Just upgraded to 20mb broadband

Jimenez

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I've just upgraded my 10mb broadband to 20mb and according to the thinkbroadband test I'm getting speeds of 11-13mb on my laptop and 17-19mb on the office computer.

In the office we have an old NTL 100 Modem and an old Linksys WRK54G router. In my room I have a WET54G wireless bridge (95-100% signal most of the time) which connects to my Xbox 360 or Laptop via Ethernet cable.

So I was wondering, do I need to upgrade any of my equipment to improve the speeds on the laptop? When I was on 10mb broadband I got 9-9.5mb speeds 90% of the time..

Or are there any other reasons I’m not getting close to 20mb speeds?

(I've tested the speeds 4-5 times at different times over 2 days)
 
virginmedia broadband has its own infrastructure, everyone else uses the bt network for wired home broadband,
virgin media is unique in as much as it uses fibre optic, but only from outside your house, if you needed a new modem vm would of advised it, are your pcs optimised with no malware virus etc as these will sap your speed, and is it all configured correctly?

look at this....
Slow broadband - Troubleshooting - Broadband - Help - Virgin Media
 
hi james
im on 24mg connection wih BE and i get 22 with my desktops but on our (WIRELESS) laptops we only get half the speed so i guess its a wireless issue?
you could try upgrading to "N" see if that makes any difference.

Mark
 
Hi James

I would maybe upgrade your routers,however are you sure you can get 20MB?
Sometimes they just say 'Up to 20MB'
If you go to
Top 10 Broadband » Best Broadband Deals - 250+ Cheap Deals & Offers. Best Broadband Comparison - Mobile Broadband, ADSL & Cable
and enter your postcode it will say where your local exchange is and what sort of speed you should be getting.

Cheers :) My desktop gets 17-19mb so I'm quite close to getting 20mb, it's just on the laptop I'm getting slower speeds.

virginmedia broadband has its own infrastructure, everyone else uses the bt network for wired home broadband,
virgin media is unique in as much as it uses fibre optic, but only from outside your house, if you needed a new modem vm would of advised it, are your pcs optimised with no malware virus etc as these will sap your speed, and is it all configured correctly?

look at this....
Slow broadband - Troubleshooting - Broadband - Help - Virgin Media

Thanks I'll check that out. I've had the laptop about a year so it's possible there could be things slowing it down.

hi james
im on 24mg connection wih BE and i get 22 with my desktops but on our (WIRELESS) laptops we only get half the speed so i guess its a wireless issue?
you could try upgrading to "N" see if that makes any difference.

Mark

Ye, I could try a new router. Virgin said I will get one with my 20mb upgrade, not sure how long it will take to come though? I took the laptop downstairs and did another speed test and I only got 12mb. The laptop was only about 10 feet away from the router..

It's just strange how I got 9 - 9.5 mb on the 10mb broadband and now they have upgraded me to 20 it's only about 3-4mb faster :S
 
I would suggest the problem is your hardware capabilities, as not all consumer devices work near their theoretical maximums.

In your case, the wireless connection, whilst (54 Mbit/s or 6.75MByte/s) is the theoretical MAX of 54g, maybe its performing nowhere near that? Due to the usual wireless fluctuations/signal issues? (although it does say 90%).

And as you say, you didn't notice this when on 10Mbit, but you do now you're trying to push 20Mbit down it. Whereas you wired connection, probably 100Mbit or even Gigabit can handle this no problem.

Code:
Theorectical MAXIMUM's for each technology/connection type.

Megabit first figure (Mbit)
MegaByte second figure (MB)

10Mbit Internet            10 Mbit/s,    1.25 MB/s
20Mbit Internet            20 Mbit/s,    2.50 MB/s
50Mbit Internet            50 Mbit/s,    6.25 MB/s

54g wireless,              54 Mbit/s,    6.75 MB/s
108n wireless,             108 Mbits/s   13.5 MB/s

10Mbit LAN,                10 Mbit/s,    1.25 MB/s
100Mbit LAN,               100 Mbit/s,   12.5 MB/s
1000Mbit LAN,              1000 Mbit/s,  125 MB/s

Maybe you could try ftp'ing or copying a file between laptop and desktop to test the speed of the wireless connection and rule out the internet?
 
Last edited:
I would suggest the problem is your hardware capabilities, as not all consumer devices work near their theoretical maximums.

In your case, the wireless connection, whilst (54 Mbit/s or 6.75MByte/s) is the theoretical MAX of 54g, maybe its performing nowhere near that? Due to the usual wireless fluctuations/signal issues? (although it does say 90%).

And as you say, you didn't notice this when on 10Mbit, but you do now you're trying to push 20Mbit down it. Whereas you wired connection, probably 100Mbit or even Gigabit can handle this no problem.

Code:
Theorectical MAXIMUM's for each technology/connection type.

Megabit first figure (Mbit)
MegaByte second figure (MB)

10Mbit Internet            10 Mbit/s,    1.25 MB/s
20Mbit Internet            20 Mbit/s,    2.50 MB/s
50Mbit Internet            50 Mbit/s,    6.25 MB/s

54g wireless,              54 Mbit/s,    6.75 MB/s
108n wireless,             108 Mbits/s   13.5 MB/s

10Mbit LAN,                10 Mbit/s,    1.25 MB/s
100Mbit LAN,               100 Mbit/s,   12.5 MB/s
1000Mbit LAN,              1000 Mbit/s,  125 MB/s

Maybe you could try ftp'ing or copying a file between laptop and desktop to test the speed of the wireless connection and rule out the internet?

Hey thanks for the post, I see what you mean. I'll try the ftp out soon and see how it goes.

I don't think my modem works properly with 20mb so I requested a new one from their website.
"We think that the cable modem you have is one of our older modems, so to get the most from our up to 20Mb service we recommend that you replace it."
I'm not sure how long it will take to come though..
 
Hey thanks for the post, I see what you mean. I'll try the ftp out soon and see how it goes.

I don't think my modem works properly with 20mb so I requested a new one from their website.
"We think that the cable modem you have is one of our older modems, so to get the most from our up to 20Mb service we recommend that you replace it."
I'm not sure how long it will take to come though..

You definitely need a replacement for the NTL Home 100. The new ones are much better.
 
You definitely need a replacement for the NTL Home 100. The new ones are much better.

i dont think so Rob, he is getting near enough full speed with the office PC here so why bother spending more money on that?

it will be the wireless IMO. and from my experience people just expect too much from wireless. at the end of the day it is still fairly new when compared with wired connections and therefore is just not as good :)

*EDIT*
i would upgrade if Virgin send you out a new one for free because quite simply...why not! but if not and you have to pay then dont bother.
 
Ye the modem replacement is free :) I have to install it myself and then phone them up to tell them the MAC address or something.

They are sending me a new router as well.. It comes free with the 20mb broadband package.
 
Ye the modem replacement is free :) I have to install it myself and then phone them up to tell them the MAC address or something.

They are sending me a new router as well.. It comes free with the 20mb broadband package.

How much was the 20MB upgrade if you don't mind me asking? And is the provided router a good'un? :confused:

Thanks :thumbsup:
 
How much was the 20MB upgrade if you don't mind me asking? And is the provided router a good'un? :confused:

Thanks :thumbsup:

Hey sorry I didn't reply sooner.

Basically, I phoned Virgin up because I found myself paying £30-40 more than the VIP Package price, even though the only extra service I have is an extra phone line. So they sorted me out with a new contract and upgraded my broadband. I guess I'll have to wait for the next bill to see how much I'm paying now :rolleyes:

I haven't recieved the router or modem yet.
 

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